Hail and Farewell

The tradition here in Basra is that when a colleague departs for home, a US flag is flown over the compound, lowered, folded, and presented. As with everything else we do, we’ve abbreviated all that into simply “he’s folded the flag.” Sometimes, we hold a “hail and farewell” soiree where we greet any newcomers to the group and bid farewell to those heading elsewhere. These affairs are held at the only PRT bar in Iraq – the Screaming Donkey – located here within the compound. We had a particularly good party last night. I am feeling the after affects today. Our management officer (who is leaving on the same plane as I) took it upon himself to remodel the Donkey in anticipation of last night’s party. It looked stunning. The bar itself is adorned with candid shots of colleagues over time. It is a comfortable place to be. We had great food provided by our dining hall crew, and the live music was courtesy of the military (it was not marching music but funk and jazzy rock – horns, guitars, sultry vocals, good beat). The party was still going strong at midnight when I determined that it was time for me to call it quits. The Brits came over, a variety of local Iraqis, a few contractors, even my dentist. Good crowd and a lot of fun. It was a nice way to close out the time in Basra.

My last day in Basra is full of mundane details – a last load of laundry, a final mailing of stuff I don’t want to carry on the flight home, a quick brush up of my quarters to welcome the next occupant, sign out of my computer account, and a round of hand-shakes. Otherwise, I am ready to go. Next stop, Baghdad.